Juanita Hall is a force to be reckoned with. She is the face of Huntsville ISD when it comes to helping children in need and has been with the district for more than 30 years. When it comes to giving back, Hall sums up her heart and efforts with these simple words: “It’s how I was raised.”
I was born in Galveston, and my father moved me here when I was an infant. He moved me with his grandparents, and I have lived in Huntsville my entire life. I went to elementary school here. I went to high school here. I went to college here at Sam Houston State, receiving my bachelor’s in elementary education. I went to Prairie View A&M and received my master’s in counseling, and I came back. I am a lifelong member of Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, been there since I was a baby.
When I was in high school, I was the first black person to work for the tax office, back when it was a little white building right down from Mance Park. That’s where I started working, and I worked there through high school and most of college.
And from there, I ventured out, and I started working for the police department. I was the first black person to work there in the ticket department. How I got that job? I don’t even know.
I have always been in the social services field. I am currently the McKinney-Vento Director. I service and work with homeless children and their families within our community.
The McKinney–Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 1987 was the first significant federal legislative response to homelessness and signed into law by President Ronald Reagan. The act has been reauthorized several times over the years.
On a daily basis, someone will call and say, “Hey, Mrs. Hall, this family is in need of assistance, this family’s about to be evicted from their home, or this child is coming to school with clothes or shoes too small, or this child is reaching out and saying they’re hungry and don’t have food at their home.” If the children are old enough, I go and speak directly with the children themselves to see what their needs are. But if they’re in our elementary campuses, I go and I visit with the parents, and they tell me what their needs are.
I’ve been truly blessed that parents feel comfortable for me to come into their homes. Over the years, I have learned that someone’s home may not be what you think it needs to be, but I respect them for where they are. And because of that respect, I have been able to feel that rapport within the community. I can pretty much go anywhere. I can go into the woods where we have had children live and be able to come into their camps and talk with the family, or I can go out to one of the richest facilities or homes here in Huntsville, where family members may have someone living with them who are homeless and need help or assistance.
Yes. We have crises all the time. I have been fortunate enough to be the mediator to try and find resources for these families. In Huntsville, resources are very, very slim. We have to be creative to find ways as a team to find these resources to meet the needs here.
Normally, elementary children are with their parents, and the family may be “doubling up” living with another family. When you’re doubling up, people get tired of having you in their space. So, these individuals are going from place to place every few months, staying with different people every other month or so.
It’s not stable. The challenges keep changing as they get moved around. They may have been living with Aunt Susie, who said, it’s okay for you to go into the kitchen, to eat whatever, whenever. But when they move in with Cousin Bobbie, there are stricter guidelines, and you can’t touch. And this, of course, really causes conflict with the children—it can get confusing. And so, they come to school very cranky. Some come to school very sleepy, because they may be living in a crowded household where there are multiple people sleeping on the floor or a mattress. That’s where we must come in to help our teachers and everyone understand these children may be acting out because they’re not in a stable environment.
Older children often leave home because they are being emotionally or physically abused. They would rather sleep in their vehicle or at a friend’s home just to get away from all that baggage and what they’re having to deal with.
Last week, we had a student who just got out of juvie, and she wanted to change her circumstances. She wanted to get an education at the high school. They called me, and I went to meet her. She’s very poorly dressed. We were able to enroll her. I went and bought her clothing and the hygiene items she needed. We were able to let her shower, and she’s in school. We made it happen. We all want her to be successful and to graduate and be a respectful citizen.
We have children come from other states to live with grandparents or great-grandparents. A lot of the time when they get here and are with their grandparents, they do well, but it’s hard for them financially. Most grandparents are on a fixed income. So again, that’s where we try to assist and do what we can to help these children.
We have many young people who are reluctant about saying anything. We must make sure they know that whatever they say to us is confidential. We’re there to help them. But in my role, I also have to tell them if they tell me anything that indicates physical abuse, by law, I must report. So, it’s a fine line to gain their trust, and I’m sure there are some kids who are living under the radar.
Yes, with a young lady named Serenity Vega. I think she will be outstanding. As I get ready to retire in the next year or so, she’ll be able to step in and carry on. She’s young, and there will be various things she’s going to do differently we may not have even thought of doing.
I would like them to know we have a very serious homeless population within our community. You may not see them, but they are here.
I would just ask the community to please, please consider continuing to help and support us. We need the community’s support, and we appreciate the support. We appreciate our churches. I cannot name all of them because we have so many who assist us. We appreciate the community leaders and every person who helps.
They are very accepting. I’m not going to say we don’t have bullying. But I am not aware of any situation where a child who is homeless was being bullied or mistreated by another student. Our teachers and our staff are good about things like that. If they see it, and understand it, they’re on top of it.
When we say, “No child left behind,” that’s just not something being said. It is really practice here. We work with our children to help them realize that everybody has something to offer and bring to the table.
I see older kids taking care of some of their peers at school. I also see these older students, if there is a significant problem, going and sharing with someone they trust. It can be a teacher, a coach, or one of the counselors.
I want to be remembered as an individual who gave back and just loved everybody. That’s what I want to be remembered for. Just giving back. Not that I had anything special, other than giving back because it was the right thing to do, and that was the way I was raised.
When I was in high school, I was poor, but I didn’t know it. I was voted “Best Dressed” and “Most Likely to Succeed.” Who would have thought that would be a poor person? But I had that mentality. My grandparents always made me feel I was special. Whenever I talk with these children, I try to make them feel they’re special, too.
I think if you put it in your head that you’re going to be successful, somewhere it’s going to stick, and it will turn out like that. So that’s what I do with these kids. “You’ve got this. You can do this.”
My husband and I have been married for 46 years. His name is Jack. (His real name is Ronald. How he got the nickname, Jack, I don’t know, but that’s his nickname, Baby Jack.) He was my childhood sweetheart, and he still is. We have four children, plus a stepson from before we got married.
I have 14 grandchildren. My oldest is Caleb Franklin. Caleb graduates this year. He is very gifted and athletic in track and field. He is like the second, or maybe third in the nation for long jump. He has been truly blessed to have received several offers from colleges. He’s a very humble and quiet young man. We are so proud of him and want to see him leave, come back, and give back to the community. That’s our hope for him.
I think he’ll come back. We have a ranch that’s been in the family for over 100 years. My husband is older, and I think he’ll come back eventually to care for that. But he’ll come back with a purpose and a plan, bigger and better plans for how to keep it going for the next 100 years. He’ll come back and give back. That’s how he was raised.
